A short, hop, skip and a jump from the Urangan Marina in Hervey Bay is Round Island. We regularly spend a day on Round Island sitting in the crystal-clear water escaping the summer heat while the kids run and play around us.
The sand at Round Island may not be the pure white powdery sand that people enjoy on Fraser Island but Round Island certainly is a great day trip option for people who just want to get somewhere quick. It has some interesting history, great fishing options and of course is perfect for those of us who just want to sit in the water and cool off.
Getting There
Round Island is only a short 1.3km’s or .8 of a nautical mile from the Urangan marina, so close that many people often paddle across to the island in kayaks. It should be noted that to reach Round Island you do need to cross the first deep water channel which feeds the Great Sandy Strait. As I have mentioned in previous blog posts, these deep-water channels can prove dangerous when strong winds push against an incoming or outgoing tide.
Beach Landing Round Island
The island is almost completely surrounded by shallow rocky reef, except for the south-eastern edge of the island. If you refer to the google map image below I have marked the direction of tidal flow around the island and the best location to anchor your vessel when visiting the island. The tidal flow can be quite strong only a few meters from the beach. So, it pays to warn and watch swimmers closely, especially any who are tempted to swim out into deeper water. The shaded area on the google map also affords a sandy base for anchoring instead of rocky reef so a standard sand anchor is effective in this area.
Things to Do
Many people fish the rocky reef to the north east of the island and regularly report species such as flathead, cod and tusk fish being captured. Others report good catches of summer whiting from the sand spit on the western side of the island. It does pay to be aware of the green zone located a few hundred meters to the north of the island but if you are land based fishing from Round Island this should not be a problem for you.
Many sea birds call Round Island home and especially in the evenings the island can become quite noisy as they return to the island to roost for the night. Exploring the island itself does not take long as it is only about 100m wide but discovering the endless amount of treasures hidden within the shallow rock pools and rock ledges surrounding the island is guaranteed to keep the kids entertained for the entire day.
Many boaties choose to stop in at Round Island after a day out on the water, for a final swim and cooling off before heading back to the marina. There are also a couple of bench seats hidden on the island, the few located in the centre of the island are quite run down, but there are others scattered around the island facing out into the bay which also look back towards Hervey Bay. This seating makes for a great location to enjoy a simple meal or glass of champagne while watching the sun set over the Urangan Pier in the distance.
Booking.comTrip Essentials
Round Island has good mobile phone coverage, especially Telstra 3G coverage. However, as with any trip it is vital to ensure you have another reliable form of communication. For us this takes the form of VHF radio and we always ensure that we log on with volunteer marine rescue Hervey Bay who monitor VHF channels 16, 73 (local area) and channel 22 (north of Fairway Beacon).
Their radio room is manned daily from 0600 to 1800 hours, and after hours VTS Gladstone monitor channel 16 for emergencies only. They provide weather updates 3 times a day. We always carry extra fuel and water, as a rule I always carry an extra 25% on top of what I calculate we will use.